A Fighter For Her Family
by ebyars2
Summary: Charlie O'Shea had been taken from her family before. But this time it was different. She had promised she'd fight, she wouldn't stop until her heart quit beating. She knew she had to get back to her family, to protect them. And above all protect her brothers, Ian and Kyle. She could only hope she'd be strong enough, to live long enough to get back to them.
1. Chapter 1

**Hey guys! So the story with this fanfic is that I just finished reading "The Host" last week and this story popped into my head. I thought maybe I'd try it out; if no one likes it and I end up getting not so many reviews on it, it'll just stop where it is. This is my second fanfic. Hope you like it!**

**Charlie POV**

I tried not to think about what was going to happen next, but I knew I couldn't escape it. I didn't want to think about what would happen once I was in the Seeker's car. I shut my eyes and grit my teeth as the Seeker shoved me down onto the icy asphalt.

**FLASHBACK**

_We had been on a raid. Ian, Jared, Wanda, Mel, and I. We had gotten to our last stop a bit later than usual. When me and Wanda came back outside with the last of our supplies, four Seeker's cars pulled into the parking lot and surrounded the truck and jeep. _

_We had no idea how to talk ourselves out of it and Wanda was a terrible liar. We were doomed. _

_One of the Seekers stepped forward and asked if we had seen any humans in the area tonight. _

_We replied we hadn't._

_The Seeker wasn't buying it—a curious trait in a soul. He asked if we needed any assistance, Wanda politely declined. _

_The main Seeker had been eyeing the truck curiously. He obviously was a bit more on the clever and distrusting side than most souls._

_His companions had slowly been drawing closer to our small group while he stepped forward to investigate the contents of the truck. But before he could, Jared punched the Seeker in the jaw. One of the other Seekers grabbed my arm and began towing me towards one of the chrome cars. _

_The Seeker that had me, a burly African-American male, took his other hand, reached up to my hair and pulled my head back. I let out a small cry of pain. I had always thought Seekers were peaceful. Sure they hunted humans down but they typically weren't violent about it. Were they?_

_I heard someone yell. "Charlie! No!" I looked up to see my family scrambling to get inside the vehicles before they too could be taken. My brother, Ian, had been the one to scream my name._

_Tears started forming in my eyes as I thought about never seeing him again. I didn't even get to say goodbye to Kyle before we left the cave—he had been with Sunny._

_I struggled against the Seeker and wrenched my hair free from his grip. That was when he pinned me onto the ground. _

I laid there on my stomach. Tears slowly rolling down my cheeks as the Seeker bound my hands behind my back. I turned and lifted my head off the ground. I saw our vehicles stopping at the other end of the parking lot. I mustered all the strength I had in me to scream.

"Ian!" I screamed as I saw my wonderful big brother running towards me in a rescue attempt. Attempt. There was no winning this battle, not tonight. "Don't! Run!"

He skidded to a halt about ten yards away, tears glistening on his cheeks in the light of the streetlamps. He shook his head.

"Go," I said. "Get out of here! Go!"

"I love you, sis." I heard him call, his voice cracking.

I shut my eyes as more tears fell down my face. "I love you too, brother."

He stood there watching as they lifted me off the ground and pulled me slowly backwards to the chrome car.

I had something that I had to say to my family. This was the last time they'd probably ever see me. If they ever did see me again, I would be dead. It would only be my body they saw.

"I'll keep fighting. I won't stop fighting until my heart stops beating! I love you all!" I cried to my family. Jared and Mel were holding each other, watching in shock; Wanda was crying into her hands; and Ian was standing there with silent tears racing down his cheeks.

I saw more pain in Ian's eyes in that moment than I ever had before. More than when we had been separated from our parents, more than when him and Kyle had lost me in the initial invasion.

The Seeker pushed me into the backseat, but before he could shut the door, I heard this, "I'll never give up on you."

I knew it was Ian. He had learned not to give up on me when I came wandering out into the desert, searching for the place they had told me about.

I was a fighter. I'd never give up, no matter what. And I wasn't about to let my family be harmed.

I watched out the window as we drove off. I watched as we turned the corner, the last view of my family were silhouettes in headlights.


	2. Chapter 2

**I'm back guys. Yes, I know it's the same day. But I figured since I have all these ideas in my head now, I might as well get them written down while they're fresh. And also, I can't guarantee the next time I'll be updating so I wanna give you as much as I can while I have some spare time. Enjoy!**

**Charlie POV**

I slowly awoke. I was careful to not open my eyes. I didn't want them to know I was awake yet. I must have fallen asleep in the car. The Seekers probably gave me some mild form of chloroform once I was out to make sure I didn't wake up until now.

I'm still me! I thought, feeling relieved. At least I still had a few more minutes as Charlie O'Shea. The human. The girl who would do anything and go to any lengths to keep her family safe.

And that was exactly what I was going to do. Mel had told me about when she was in Wanda's head. She had put mental walls up to block Wanda from seeing Mel's memories and thoughts. If I survived my occupation, that's what I would do. I would fight the soul implanted inside me.

I _had_ to survive. I promised I would fight. I could do this. I _had _to live. Because if I didn't, my family would be in jeopardy. My living was crucial to their survival. Everyone in the caves would be captured and occupied. I shuddered at the thought.

I tried to take in as much of my surroundings as I could using my other senses. The room smelled painfully artificial. Not at all like the dusty, humid smell of the caves that I was so accustomed to. There was a quiet buzzing noise coming from somewhere to my right. I guessed it was a machine tracking my heart rate and such.

I tensed.

I heard footsteps right outside the door followed by the sound of a doorknob turning. I tried to relax and look like I was still unconscious before the Healer could see me on the stainless steel table.

It was now that I fully realized just how uncomfortable the pillow my head was resting on truly was. My neck ached from the awkward positioning.

The Healer's footsteps had a soft crunching noise to them. Scrubs, I realized.

"Welcome to the Mayo Clinic in Phoenix," He spoke to me in a calming, smooth voice. When I made no reply, he continued as if he knew I was awake. "I apologize for the inhumane manner in which you were brought to us."

His voice actually sounded sincere. Well of course it did. He wasn't like the others. He was a Healer, not a Seeker. He was a soul. Souls, at least the majority of them, were pure.

I slowly opened my eyes to see a pair of white-blue eyes looking down on me. The Healer smiled. He was a blond, Caucasian male probably in his mid-thirties. Apparently, he knew I was already awake when he began speaking.

"I am Healer Twell."

I gave a small nod to show him I could at least be considerate to him. I could trust him for the few minutes I had left.

"You're probably wondering why you are still human. It was with great difficulty that I persuaded the Seekers to delay your occupation." I just listened to him. That was all I could do. I was paralyzed by my surroundings; this whole situation had me paralyzed in a feeling almost like fear.

"Why?" I croaked. My throat was dry and scratchy. I fought against it to speak anyway. "Why would you postpone my occupation? Don't you want more souls and fewer humans? Isn't this kind of unproductive?"

He smiled as if I had said something entertaining and comical. I was completely serious. Why would a Healer want to put off an occupation? Their job was to implant more souls and increase the soul-human ratio.

"I want to learn more about humans. Their behavior. I've only seen humans who were unconscious, and I only saw the souls in the human body after their occupation. I have never spoken to a human before. As a Healer, I need to know the species I am giving to souls. My host was unresponsive to my occupying him; I haven't had any unusual encounters with my host. I have heard stories of very responsive and very strong hosts. I only wish to learn more about humans."

"Why should I help you? Why should I give you information on my species? You're only going to use the information I give you to hunt down and kill more humans." I kept my voice calm and steady but inside, I was boiling with anger.

"We souls don't see it as murder; this is simply how we live. We live in peace with our hosts and we coexist. The rebels are the only ones that we do not coexist with," He walked to the wall of glass at the head of the surgical table and looked out over the city. "I, personally, do not see the rebels as a threat, unlike most other souls on Earth. I think the rebels should be left in peace to live out the rest of their days. They are small enough in number to not be a threat."

I laid there listening, mesmerized. How could a soul not think of rebelling humans as a threat? And he clearly underestimated us humans. We were fighters. We weren't going to go quietly. And no soul, other than Wanda and Blaze, knew there were more humans than the small clan in our cave.

I sat up and let me legs dangle over the side of the table.

"So," He came back to where I was sitting and pulled a small stool to the table. "Tell me about humans. Humans' music, history, psychology, and—most importantly—emotions."

I felt my mouth drop. Should I tell him anything? My thoughts immediately flew to my brothers. I wouldn't jeopardize their safety. I could give him all the information on music and history I possessed. Psychology and emotions were a completely different story. I would be telling a _soul_ how humans thought and how our emotions worked. I'd be a traitor I couldn't do it. I'd give him what little information I had on music and history. That was no problem.

Where to begin though?

I was escorted to my room in silence. I kept my eyes on the floor as I thought about my day.

My Healer was quite nice. He had listened to my explanations with an intensity and interest I'd only known humans to possess. I explained to him that I couldn't provide much information on emotions and our psychology.

I didn't try to lie to him, although I'm sure he had expected me to seeing as I was human. I'd told him I would be a traitor if I told him how we humans thought. He respected my wishes, which I was extremely glad for.

We spoke about human history, music, and select emotional information for several hours. I was exhausted by the time we were finished. Healer Twell arranged for my dinner to be brought to my room.

We arrived at my room and the soul that escorted me opened the door. She smiled as I entered the room. I gave her a small smile back.

I felt like such a traitor. I had always believed souls to be the enemy, not friends. But how could I help it? What was I supposed to do, be rude and ignore them when they were showing hospitality?

They're going to kill you come morning you dimwit, I thought. You can't be so friendly.

The soul said she'd be outside my door in case I needed her. I nodded back.

I spotted a tray of food on the end table by the small sofa. I walked over to it to see what was for dinner. Roast beef, mashed potatoes with gravy, peas, and a biscuit. I felt my eyes grow three times their normal size.

We never had meals like this in the cave. I was going to enjoy my last meal. Even if it wasn't with my loved ones.

I dove into my food, moaning at how lovely the flavor of the flaky biscuit was. Everything was delicious. I thought about this being the last time I would eat nice food, or any food at all for that matter, and I began to cry.

I wasn't afraid of dying. I was scared of not seeing my brothers one last time. Of not seeing Wanda and Mel and Jared and Jaime and Jeb and all the others who were so close to my heart.

My heart ached with how much it hurt to think of my family. I would never be a part of another harvest, I would never sleep in the game room during the rainy season, I would never play soccer with my brothers again.

I suddenly lost my appetite.

I found clothes that I assumed were pajamas, changed, and climbed into the soft bed. I curled up into a ball—which was how I always slept—and cried myself to sleep, my mind full of memories of the happy days before the invasion.


	3. Chapter 3

**Here's the third chapter! Enjoy!**

**Charlie POV**

Healer Twell carried a small, chrome box towards the surgical stand beside the table.

I laid there. Waiting for him to put me under, waiting for it to all go black, waiting to die.

He opened the box and pulled out a small silver container shaped like a peach seed. I knew what was in there. I had seen Jared and the others bring those back for Doc.

That was a cyrotank.

The soul that would be put inside me was in there asleep.

Healer Twell looked down at me with sad eyes. "I have enjoyed my time with you. It might be wrong of me to say this, but in a small way, I wish I could have known you longer," He paused before he said his last sentence. "Goodbye, Charlie."

I was surprisingly calm; almost as if it hadn't hit me yet that I was about to die. Seconds from death and I was completely chill with it? Something was wrong with me, but I didn't know what and I didn't have time to find out.

He took a small cylinder of a medicine; I didn't take the time to read it. It might as well have been labeled, "Death."

I closed my eyes and when I felt the soft tickling sensation of mist on my nose, I inhaled deeply.

I let the medicine pull me slowly under.

My last thoughts as a human on Earth were thoughts of love for my brothers.

**River POV**

I awoke with a slight headache. That wasn't normal. I had never had a headache in any of my hosts after I had been inserted.

I slowly opened my eyes and sat up. My Healer was standing next to the table I was on.

"What is your name?" He asked of me kindly.

"River Of Stars," I answered quietly. "But please call me River; it's nicer."

"Very well then, River. I am Healer Twell. Welcome to Earth."

Healer Twell was quite a compassionate soul; I could tell already. There were no Seekers in the operating room yet and for that I was very grateful. I wasn't ready to be peppered with questions about my host's memories. I hadn't even had time to adjust to this new body.

I slowly dropped my new legs off the table one at a time. My Healer encouraged me to move slowly and to take my time getting accustomed to my body.

I stood slowly, testing my balance on my feet.

"How are you feeling?" He asked me.

"Fine. I do have a bit of a headache. Is that normal with these hosts?"

His brows furrowed. "No, that isn't. I will warn you, your host is one of the few rebellion humans. She is strong. She may not have left."

This news worried me, but I tried to keep a placid face in front of my Healer. I didn't want him to worry about me in my new host.

Healer Twell did a brief examination to make sure everything was in working order. I was cleared and sent to my room.

I went straight to the tall mirror in the corner. I wanted to know what this host looked like. She had long dirty blond hair down to her hips, a heart-shaped face, and a very pleasing smile.

I walked out onto the small balcony that over looked the city and far beyond, I saw the tops of mountains on the horizon. The air was hot and dry. I wondered if all of Earth was like this. I hoped not. It wouldn't be very enjoyable if it was a complete desert. I had never experienced a desert before. I had only been on one planet before this and that was the Flower planet.

I was a young soul with much to learn of the universe and its twelve planets.

I caught myself unconsciously gazing at the mountains in the distance. I wondered why that was. I felt something inside me. Almost…a longing feeling. I furrowed my brows and shook my head slightly.

It was then I felt it. A churning in my head that reminded me of a thunderstorm. It was a dark, gray, rolling mass inside my head that kept churning over and over.

Then I heard her speak to me.

_You may have my body, but I'm in control._ She didn't say it with any anger or hostility in her voice. It was as if it was a fact.

_What do you mean? _I asked her.

_Watch._ She wasn't hostile as far as I could tell. She seemed like she was just going to coexist with me in my head, as long as she didn't fade away.

I was waiting for her to show me whatever it was she was going to when I suddenly ran into the main room and sat on the sofa.

I didn't control any of it. I had had no intention of moving while I waited for her to show me. And apparently, this was exactly what she wanted to show me.

_Did _you _do that? _I asked amazed.

_Yes. I can control my body. Well, our body. I'm Charlie._ She replied in a surprisingly civil tone. All of the resistant hosts I had heard about hadn't been civil at all—they were all hostile and angry all the time.

_I'm River of Stars but I prefer River. _I introduced myself.

_River, _She repeated in my head. _It's a very pretty name. _

_Thank you._ I smiled.

_How many planets have you inhabited?_ She asked curiously.

_How do you know about other planets?_

_I've learned about souls over the past year. You're probably really surprised I'm not yelling at you. I have no quarrel with you. Do I particularly enjoy being locked in here? No, but a human's gotta do what she's gotta do. _She chuckled at her Earth saying.

_How did you learn about souls? Have you been spying on us?_ I asked, truly curious now.

_In a way, I guess I have but not with the intention of conquering souls. I don't know if it's safe to tell you… _She hesitated.

I waited.

_You can trust me. _I told her.

_I'm not sure about that just yet. I know that souls can't lie but I've seen corrupt souls and what they can do. And who's to say you won't tell the Seekers?_

That took me aback. She had quite a bit of knowledge of our protocol for new souls on planets.

_You can. I promise. I won't tell the Seekers. Besides, you have plenty of impregnable walls built up so I'm not even going to attempt to break through._

_You're not even going to _try? She asked, shocked.

_No. I trust you. _I thought about it for half of a second. _But it's easier for _me _to trust _you_ because you can't tell anybody anything. You're in my head._

_And you're in my body. _She replied; I could tell she had mentally slumped a bit.

I wondered if she had any family surviving. I needed to get acquainted with her anyway.

_Do you have any family that is still human?_

She didn't respond for a minute. I almost thought she had left for today.

_My parents were occupied in the initial invasion. _That was all she said. I assumed she was an only child.

She interrupted my thoughts. _I'll reveal little pieces at a time as I see them relevant and important. They'll only be given to you if you really need to know. But you have to promise me something in return._

_That depends on what I have to promise. _I replied cautiously.

_You have to promise that if I trust you with a piece of information, you have to follow my instruction on whether you can or can't tell the Seekers. And if you break your promise by telling them something I told you not to tell the Seekers, I'll have to take matters into my own hands. Literally._

_You really mean that don't you?_ I asked, completely horrified. The thought of my body being used against me to harm another soul made my stomach turn. We weren't violent.

_Dead serious._ She said in all severity.

_Alright. _I said after a moment to think it over. _I promise._

_Thank you._ I could feel the relief radiating from her small corner in my mind.

_Tell me something? _

_Hmm? _She replied.

_What do you feel? Not emotions but physically. When you're in my head, how does it feel on your end?_

_It's cramped. Like I'm in a small hole, curled in a ball, and I can't move very much. The sides are inches from my face. I can't move very much. It's not all that comfortable._ She replied grimly.

_Oh. I'm sorry._ And I meant it. I was being sincere.

_Oh, I'm not blaming you. You didn't know what it would be like when I was in your head. You didn't even know _if _I was going to come back._

_Still, it isn't very good for you, even if you aren't in a physical body it's still not a good feeling for you. _

_I'll live._ Charlie promised.

**Charlie POV**

I'll admit it. I was being a bit manipulative. I could tell that she was young. She didn't understand the complexity of human emotion. She didn't know how to be suspicious; she trusted blindly. It was easy to take advantage of.

Yes, I realized what I was doing but I had to protect my family. I was going to get back to them no matter what it took. If I got to know River better in time and if she proved to be trustworthy, then maybe I'd let her in on my secret and apologize.

But I'd only do that when she understood my point of view. I'd only apologize when she witnessed how much I loved my family and once she understood how we humans in the resistance lived.

I hadn't been telling her the whole truth either. But I wasn't going to tell her about Ian and Kyle yet. Once there was trust established, and then I'd think about it a bit more.

When I had realized I had survived, I felt ecstatic. I couldn't believe it. I had won the first small battle. I had kept my promise so far.

Now I just had to make sure I fulfilled the rest of it and made it back home.


	4. Chapter 4

**So… I've gotten almost 70 views and only 1 review. I take it people don't like my story enough to review? This is my favorite idea for a fanfic I've ever had. I honestly don't want to stop writing it. I REALLY want to hear from my readers. PLEASE R&R! **

**Now that my little schpeel is over, enjoy chapter 4!**

** -Em**

**Ian POV**

I sat alone in mine and Wanda's room. I didn't want to be bothered right now. The others didn't understand how I was feeling. I had been trying so hard to act normal and try to go on like I did every day, but I needed a break. From the compassionate looks, the "I'm sorries," all of it.

I had lost my sister. My little sister—who I had lost the first time 4 years ago, who had survived without us, who had made a miraculous return to me and Kyle—was gone. I knew she was going to fight as long as she possibly could. That's just who she was—a fighter. She always had been.

Her last words echoed in my mind. They had been for the past week, ever since she had been taken.

_I won't stop fighting until my heart stops beating…_

I could only hope that was true. That she would fight her occupation.

I couldn't get that night out of my head. I didn't think I ever would.

**FLASHBACK**

_I slowly walked back to the others in shock. Charlie, my incredibly strong little sister, had just been taken._

_We all got in our cars in complete silence. Jared and Mel took the jeep while Wanda and I got in the truck. I pulled the door shut, started the engine, and we pulled out of the parking lot._

_Wanda laid a hand on my arm._

"_I am __**so**__ sorry, Ian." She looked like she was almost in as much pain as I was. But that wasn't possible. The only person who could ever feel this much pain and loss was Kyle._

_How was I going to tell him? We'd just got Char back less than a year ago. Now we had lost her for good, as far as we knew._

"_I am too. I shouldn't have let her come."_

_Wanda shook her head. "No. Charlie's been on several raids. She understands the risk. She chose to come; she didn't ask you for permission to come."_

"_But I'm her brother. I'm supposed to protect her. I couldn't do anything…" I felt a stinging behind my eyes and fresh tears ran down my dust-covered face. Wanda didn't say anything. She just kept her hand around my arm, comforting me. "I tried…" I choked as I cried. "I tried to go back for her. To save her. And she…she told me to __**leave her**__."_

_I saw tears falling from Wanda's eyes in my peripheral vision. _

"_Why would she do that? Just give herself up to those Seekers?" I hissed. I wanted to kill them. All of them. I could care less that they were souls and were Wanda's family. I wanted my little sister back._

"_Because she loves you. She didn't want you to get taken too and she knew that was what would happen if you tried to save her. She didn't want you to be taken."_

_I loved my sister so much. The idea of never seeing her again killed me. It was like someone had a hold of my gut and was twisting it. _

_It wasn't fair! How could she be taken from my life again just when we'd gotten her back? _

_I couldn't talk anymore. If I did, I'd be taking my anger out of Wanda and I couldn't do that. She was fragile and I didn't want her to think I was angry with her._

_We drove on in silence. When we arrived at the cave, Jeb and Jaime met us._

_As soon as Jeb saw Mel's face, he knew something had gone terribly wrong. He searched our faces for an answered but stopped when he finally reached me._

_He had counted the faces—he knew Charlie was gone._

_Jaime stood there, horror-struck. His eyes welled up with tears and he ran down the corridor into the plaza._

_Jeb gave me an apologetic look that spoke volumes. I knew he wanted to say something, but what was there to say? How do you tell someone how sorry you were? How did you express that in words? You couldn't._

_We left the cars for the night; we'd unload in the morning._

_I walked Wanda to our room and tucked her into bed. _

_Then I went to find my brother._

_I walked slowly to Kyle and Sunny's room. I wasn't sure how I was going to tell him. I had to find the right words._

_I reached their room and knocked on the small door._

_Sunny answered._

"_Hi, Ian. How'd the raid go?" She asked, completely oblivious to my tear-stained face._

_Before I could answer her, she noticed my face and my eyes. Her face grew worried._

"_Where's Kyle?" I managed; my throat was closing up on me._

"_I'm here." I heard him call from behind the door._

_My brother came to stand behind Sunny. He took one look at my face and slowly walked past Sunny into the corridor._

"_Sunny, give us a minute, okay hon?" He asked her, his face never leaving mine._

_She nodded silently and quietly shut the door._

"_What is it?" Kyle didn't blink, he didn't flinch, didn't move. _

_I blinked the tears back as best I could and took a deep breath._

"_Charlie." I gasped. My throat was tightening and I felt like I could barely breath._

_Kyle looked at me in disbelief. He shook his head._

"_No…No. That…That can't. No." He kept shaking his head as he held his head in his hands._

_I couldn't speak. I could only comfort him. I reached out to him and he grabbed me in a huge hug._

_We stayed like that for a while. We didn't speak, we just stayed there. Two brothers who had lost their little sister. Two brothers who held each other and wept over their loss._

**END FLASHBACK**

Kyle hadn't been able to deal with it as well I had. He barely ate once a day. He stayed in his room instead of working. He separated himself from Sunny. He couldn't be around anyone, not even the person he worshipped with his whole being.

I, on the other hand, couldn't be around Wanda enough. She was my rock, my comfort. I worked in the fields to keep my mind busy. I didn't seclude myself nearly as much as he did. When I needed my breaks from everyone else, I took them. Just like I was doing now. I ate more regularly than Kyle did, but my stomach still couldn't handle too much.

I thought about Charlie. Thought about all the happy memories we had together growing up. I was closer to her than Kyle was but we were all each others' best friend. I remember climbing the big oak tree in the backyard with her when she was five; I had been eight.

I remembered the first time she rode her bike. She got about 5 feet down the sidewalk from mom when she tipped and scraped her elbow.

I wondered if she was still alive in her head. I could only hope she was.

Just like I could only hope she would find a way back to us, no matter how long it took.

**There it is! Please review! I would love it if you could fill up that little box below with any feedback for me! I hope you liked the Ian POV. I wanted to give a little insight to his side of this whole tragedy. Next chapter will probably be back to River/Charlie POV but I felt that you guys would probably be wanting to know what was going on with Ian and Kyle while Charlie was gone. :)**

**I would also like to clear up their ages. I set Charlie at 18, Ian at 21, and Kyle at 23. Just in case you were wondering on how old they really were.**

**Again, please REVIEW! I would love you forever if you did! :D**

** -Em**


	5. Chapter 5

**I would like to give a shout out to Unexplainable Awesomeness and Host100 for their reviews. I really appreciated the feedback they both gave me and they've been super encouraging with this story! Thank you guys so much! **

**And thank you to aleksitupper19 for following/favoriting! :)**

**Hope you all like the story so far. It has a long way to go and I have a lot of good ideas of where I want it to go. I am always open to suggestions and opinions on the story! **

**Please R&R! Seriously though. Please do review. It only takes a quick sec to let me know if you liked it or not. Please just type "like" or "didn't like" if you don't have much to say. Please just let me know that this story is worth continuing. **

** -Em**

**River POV**

I sat on my small balcony, sketching the mountains on the horizon. I had a strange, unconscious fascination with them ever since I had first laid eyes on them. It had been about two weeks since I had occupied this body.

I didn't prod Charlie for memories or information. I told the Seekers that my host was releasing memories as she thought them relevant.

They didn't like that for some reason. I wasn't going to lie to them. Souls didn't lie. I did find it odd that the Seekers weren't comfortable with my host being resistant to her occupation.

_Why would they be? _Charlie asked me. _I'm keeping what information I have about the humans to myself. I'm keeping my promise. I won't let the others be taken. _I wasn't used to human attitudes and emotions. I hadn't experienced very many of them because Charlie kept to herself and didn't let me see past the gray walls.

I found no problems with her being alive. Charlie just stayed in her corner during the day, occasionally adding her opinion or putting in a remark here and there.

We talked late into the night when she first made her appearance. We discovered that she could control the body only when she really wanted to; it took a lot of her energy to push herself out to the physical aspect of existing. She didn't try to escape or cause our body harm, for which I was grateful.

She seemed to be surprisingly content living in my head. I knew she wanted to get out and be her real self again but that wasn't possible.

I felt something faintly reverberating towards me from Charlie's corner. Was that…a snicker? I wasn't used to human behavior; it was odd to me.

_You bet I wanna get out of here. I mean, it's nothing personal. I really do enjoy your company and you're a kind soul. I just miss the others. I want to be home…_

I instantly felt many things all at once. Pain, loss, sorrow, loneliness. My eyes began tearing up immediately.

_I'm sorry. _Charlie apologized. _I didn't realize it would affect you that way. _

_It's fine. _I assured her. _I just wasn't prepared for that._

These human emotions were strong.

Charlie chuckled. _Yes they are. But the strongest of them is love, without a doubt. Jealousy and hatred can be very powerful as well but love makes you do things you normally would consider crazy. It's definitely only an emotion belonging to humans. I don't think any other being could handle love the way humans do. And even then, we don't handle it the greatest._

I had no idea what she was talking about. I hadn't experienced this kind of love. I loved souls—they were my family. They were delicate, beautiful, and pure. Anyone could love a soul.

_Not everyone._ She corrected me. _Most humans love souls._

I agreed with her on that. But all souls could see that another soul was beautiful and lovely.

_We don't see as souls do. We're a different species entirely. _Charlie reminded me.

She was patient with me. I was young. I had a lot to learn on this new planet. Most importantly, I needed to learn how to put the same kind of gray walls she had up so that she couldn't hear my thoughts.

I felt her smile. _It's not too hard. You just have to want to._

I set my pencil down and closed my eyes. Thinking about how I wanted my thoughts to myself so that I couldn't be interrupted. I just wanted a little space. It was getting a bit crowded.

And it also felt a bit unfair that Charlie could keep her thoughts from me but could hear mine. I didn't like that.

Once I admitted that to myself, I felt Charlie becoming fuzzy in the background.

_Can you hear me?_

_Yes. _She responded.

I thought of the mountains I was drawing. Every night for the past week, I had dreamt of seeing them in person.

_Do you know what I'm thinking?_ I tested Charlie.

_Nope. You did it. Good job, River._ She congratulated me.

Relief flooded through me.

_I felt that. It's funny—we can close each others' thoughts off but we still feel each others' emotions. Just an interesting observation._

She did far too much observing in my opinion. It was as if she was taking notes on my daily routine and life. She just made a list back there I guess.

It bothered me.

**A month after Charlie was taken…**

**River POV**

I felt strange. I felt…out of control.

Which was exactly what I was.

Charlie had taken over my body. I was in her place now—squished in the tiny recesses of our mind.

She was stuffing a bag full of clothes, food and water.

_What are you doing? What's going on? _I asked frantically.

_We're going somewhere far away from here. I can't take it anymore. I have to get back to them. _

The other human survivors, I realized.

_Yes, the others. Your walls are down, by the way._

Why was she being so abrupt with me? I hadn't done anything. The last few weeks had been fine. We didn't argue, there were no disputes or hostility between us.

All I had done was go to sleep last night.

_What time is it? _I asked Charlie.

_About 3am. I wanted to make sure you were asleep before I took over. I didn't want to chance you waking up. I'm glad you woke up when you did. I'm almost done packing. Just a few last minute things…_

She rummaged through cabinets as quietly as she could, collecting anything and everything that could possibly help us on our journey.

_That's all of it._ She grabbed the small duffel and slung it over our shoulder. _Now we just gotta find a way out of here._

_There's the far stairway on the back side of the building. _I offered.

Why was I helping her escape? We needed to stay here where it was safe. Not go on an adventure in search of her friends.

_They're not my friends._ She scolded me harshly. It was harshest I'd ever heard her speak to me. _They're my family. I have to get back to them. I promised I'd keep fighting and this is what that is. Me fighting to get back to them._

_I understand that you want to be with them again…but they won't see you when we do get there. They'll see your body with eyes that don't belong to you._ I wasn't trying to be harsh, I was trying to get her to see reason. Staying here was the best thing to do for both of us.

_You're wrong on that part. The best thing for me to do is to get back to them. They love me. No one here cares snot if I live. They want all humans to be gone and total domination._

She'd never spoken ill of a soul before. What brought on this sudden change?

_There was no change. I don't like it here. It's that simple. I hate it here, actually. Home is where I belong—with my family—and I'm going to get there. I don't hate souls; I just wish they could see our point of view sometimes. You don't realize what we go through. If you knew, you just might understand why I'm still alive. The risks we take to stay alive, the bonds we form… I can't just tell you about them. You wouldn't understand that way. I have to show you what I mean. We're leaving tonight. I'm going home._

I couldn't say anything. I just gave in and let her have control.

She was right. It was crowded in here. I felt extremely claustrophobic. The walls really were inches from my face and I was shaped into a ball like play dough.

She slowly opened the door and ran tiptoeing down the hall.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6! Enjoy!**

** -Em**

**Charlie POV**

I ran. _I _ran. It wasn't River. It was me. I was the one running. I ran down the stairway as fast as I could while being quiet.

When I made it to the main floor, I slowly opened the door and found that not a soul was in sight.

I smiled wryly at my play on words.

It seemed very easy to get out of the building. _Too _easy.

But I remembered that these were souls we were talking about. They were suspicious of anything. No trust issues with them.

Well, at least not ordinary souls. Some Seekers, yes.

As soon as the main door was open enough for me to get through, I bolted for the parking lot.

I knew that if I hot-wired a car, it would be too obvious that I had taken over my own body. Then the Seekers would come searching.

I shuddered at the thought. I couldn't put my family at that kind of risk.

That was why I left a note saying that I was "relocating to a more suitable climate." River had been on the Flower planet before here so I said I was leaving to go to Monterey in California. The climate was nicer there than it was in Phoenix. And it would be more suitable for River to be in a place that was Flower friendly.

As I reached the end of the block, I slowed to a walk. I hadn't heard from River in a few minutes, but I could feel her presence back there. Is that what she felt when I was stuffed in there? I felt sympathy for her.

I hadn't wanted to take over but I had to. To get back to Ian and Kyle, to keep my promise to my family. They were all I had left and I wasn't going to lose them again.

I thought back to that night four years ago; when the initial invasion began.

**FLASHBACK**

_I woke up to hearing voices in the hallway. In my sleepy state, I barely made out the voices of my parents._

_I rubbed my eyes as my mom burst into my room._

"_Charlie, honey. Grab a bag and stuff as many clothes as you can into it." She reached into my closets and grabbed the extra flashlights. She was already in a pair of jeans and a t-shirt._

"_What's going on mom?" I asked, still dazed from sleep._

"_Don't ask questions right now, honey. Just pack." She scurried from the room and down the hall to my brothers' rooms._

_I quickly threw the covers off, grabbed the first pair of clothes I found, and threw them on. I grabbed my school backpack, dumped the schoolbooks on the floor, and began stuffing it full of clothes. I reached under my bed, grabbed my sneakers and shoved them into my backpack._

_I went out into the hallway just as my brother Kyle was passing me, a large box of camping gear in his arms._

_I was utterly confused. My parents had been giving me really early curfews and saying I couldn't go to friends' houses anymore. They had never been that strict with me. Were those new rules somehow involved in this ordeal?_

_I wanted to know what was going on, but before I could do anything, Ian was wrapping his warm arm around my shoulders._

_Ian was my best friend in the whole wide world. I felt safe when I was with him. He seemed to know just when I needed him. We hurriedly walked down the hallway into the living room where we found several bags being loaded with food, clothes, pillows, blankets, lanterns, and all kinds of camping equipment._

_There was a small piece of paper on the kitchen table. I wondered what it was._

_That was the last straw. "WHAT is going ON?" I demanded to know._

_Ian looked down at me then to my dad who was loading a bag of camping cookware. My dad gave him one stiff nod. Ian pulled me over to the couch and sat me down._

"_Char, I need you to listen really carefully, okay?"_

_I nodded._

"_There's been an invasion. We've been watching it the past couple of weeks ever since we noticed a difference. The radio stations were different, the television shows were off, and even the news wasn't filled with half of the crime that it normally is. You remember that couple we saw at the grocery store the other day?"_

_Of course I remembered them. How could I forget? They had those piercing white-blue rings in their eyes._

"_Yeah." I said weakly._

"_Those people had been taken over by the aliens invading Earth. I know this all sounds crazy but it's true." Ian watched me, waiting for me to respond._

_This _was _crazy. There was no "sounding crazy" about it. It was absolutely ridiculous. Aliens? Invasions of Earth? WHAT?_

_I shook my head. "No, there's no way…How is that even possible? I mean, _aliens_?"_

_Ian looked me right in the eyes and I knew that this wasn't a joke, that it was true, and that he was deathly serious. "Yes. Aliens. They just reached the town limits. We have to get out of Pacific Grove _now._"_

_I nodded in agreement. They could explain in more detail on the way out of town. As I passed the kitchen table, I grabbed the piece of paper and stuffed it into my pocket._

_We finished packing our supplies and quietly carried everything out to the station wagon. Dad had just opened the back hatch when suddenly we were surrounded by white light._

_We squinted in the sudden light and saw five shiny cars and one large white truck. _

_The aliens, I realized in horror._

_A woman's voice came on over a megaphone._

"_Please put your belongings down and walk slowly towards the street."_

_We all stood there, our faces filled with horror, fear, shock, and sorrow. What were we going to do? There were too many of them. There was no way we were going to get away._

_I looked to my mom. She shook her head as tears welled up in her eyes._

_So this was the end. I was going to die, I guessed. I didn't know what it meant to be "invaded by the aliens." I didn't know what they did to you after they captured you._

_We all looked at each other in turns. Saying goodbyes and "I love you's" with our eyes. _

_Ian was the last person I looked at. I hadn't cried over the rest of my family and not seeing them again. It was only when I looked at Ian—my big brother, my rock, and sole support that I began to cry._

_Ian mouthed. "I love you, Charlie."_

"_I love you, too." I whispered back._

_Before we could start walking towards the street, six aliens walked up the driveway. Two of them grabbed our parents by their arms and began towing them to the cars. Two more went for Ian and Kyle but they began to run. Two more came after me. _

_I didn't know what to do. Run? What about Mom and Dad?_

_I heard someone yell as I turned and began running._

"_Kids, go! Get outta here!" It was my Dad. Tears stung my eyes as I booked it across people's lawns. I kept running for what seemed like an eternity but I had to make sure the aliens weren't behind me anymore._

_I stopped probably twenty minutes later on the outskirts of town in an alley. I had lost the aliens… but I had also lost my brothers._

_I'd never felt so exposed, endangered, and alone in my life. I started crying again._

_I kept walking. By the time dawn broke, I was almost to Salinas._

_For the next four or five months, I observed. I watched the souls' behavior, their speech, their interaction with each other, their body language, everything. I studied them until I had it down to a "T." _

_Then I acted the part. I bought contacts online before the human/soul population ratio was 50/50. I acted like a soul. I went into the stores, I got my few supplies and I lived in ditches, drainpipes, dumps, anywhere I wouldn't be found._

_I made my way across the Sierra Nevadas and into Nevada. I stayed in Las Vegas for about a year, then went to Tucson. I slowly made my way to Phoenix._

_I was 17. I was smart, deceptive, and cunning. I had good tactical thinking and knew how to talk my way out of any situation. _

_I followed the map on that piece of paper I had snatched up those three years ago. I knew there was a reason for this map and the only one I could think of was a safe place. I was praying that Ian and Kyle would be there. I hoped they knew where to go without the map. I'm sure they did. They were smart and they were older than me._

_I didn't know if they had been captured along with Mom and Dad. I missed my family all the time. They were what kept me going—what kept me fighting all these years. I wasn't going to let their deaths be in vain._

_I was 18. And I was dying. I had followed the map. I knew where I was going. I was almost there. It was just past that ridge. The safe place._

_I had drunk the last of my water only hours ago. I had made a gallon water go for about 10 days. But it was the heat that was killing me. Slowly, I could feel my body giving into the sun's hot rays beating down on my face. _

_I sank to my knees. I couldn't go any farther._

_I shook my head in disbelief. This wasn't who I was—a quitter. I had fought this far, I could fight the rest of the way. _

_I slugged my way through the desert brush. _

_When I made it to the ridge, I rounded the corner and there it stood. Looming over the desert plains was a huge mountain. I gazed up at it in awe._

_This was it. _

_It was probably 200 yards away. I began the long walk across the open land towards it. _

_I saw something amongst the heat waves about halfway to the mountain. It looked like something white with brown puffs around it. I realized what it was and went into survival mode. I was too weak to run. I could play dead, but they'd just take my body and use it. What was there to do?_

_Hand-to-hand combat, I decided._

_I stood there and waited for the car to reach me._

_Only it wasn't Seekers._

_It was a human man but it wasn't Ian or Kyle._

_I smiled despite my disappointment. "You're human too!" I sighed._

_He looked at me in shock._

"_How did you find this place?"_

_I held up the tattered map in my hands. "My family had this before they were taken. I followed it."_

_He nodded and smiled. "I'm Jared Howe."_

_He held out his hand and I shook it. "Charlie."_

_I had to know right then and there. "Do you have two men by the names of Ian and Kyle O'Shea here with you?"_

_He looked at me for a long time, probably trying to figure out where that question came from._

"_Yeah." He finally answered._

"_Are you serious?" I gasped, my eyes filling up with tears._

"_Yeah, why?" Jared Howe was clearly confused._

"_I'm their little sister! I'm Charlie O'Shea!" I squealed giddily._

"_What?! They've been looking for you ever since they got here. Come on!" He rushed back over to the Jeep and I jumped in the passenger seat. _

_Jared whipped the car around sped back towards the mountain fortress. _

_I sighed happily. I was finally going to see my brothers again and I could not wait. I wanted to see their beautiful faces, to tell them how much I had missed them, to tell them I loved them, to hold them and never let them go. That's what I wanted._

_I closed my eyes as tears ran down my dust covered face. I was finally and truly happy._

_I was going home._

**I know I was mean for not including the reunion and for leaving you hanging right there. But I promise I have a plan for when I bring the reunion in! :) **

**Please R&R! I hope you enjoyed the read as much as I LOVED writing this chapter! This is probably my favorite chapter so far. Anyway, give me all the feedback you can. Please. I LOVE HEARING FROM MY READERS. PLEASE REVIEW. Thanks guys!**

**PS- Sorry it was so long. **

** -Em**


	7. Chapter 7

**I wanted to clear a few things up so my readers weren't confused. There were a few things I realized after I posted the chapter. **

**First, I realized I had a bit of a consistency issue. When Charlie met Jared for the first time and when he took her back to the caves, she wasn't wearing the contacts. She had taken them out because the sand had made them grainy. I forgot to mention that in the flashback last chapter.**

**Secondly, in Chapter 6, it ended in a flashback. That was when she first made it to the caves almost a year ago. Charlie is now almost 19.**

**So sorry if the lack of information confused any of you. I'll try to do better next time. :/**

**Please enjoy Chapter 7! :D**

** -Em**

**River POV**

I had heard everything.

The story of how Charlie lost her family in the initial invasion, how she managed to make it back to them, that she had two brothers, all of it. I knew everything—even where we were going.

But there wasn't anything I could do about it. Charlie was still in control of our body. Not that I wanted to turn her and her family in. I considered her my friend and I didn't blame her for keeping all of this from me.

Why would she trust me? Now she might but when I first had occupied her body she wouldn't have even considered it.

It didn't take much to figure it out. After all, two plus two equals four. Based on her memories of the invasion and what had happened to her family, there was no reason to think that she considered souls to be peaceful. Her first encounter with them had been tragic.

I had just watched as the scenes of her memory flew across the mind she was now in control of. Absorbing everything as she was remembering what happened.

I made sure to keep my gray walls up so she couldn't even tell what I was feeling. She couldn't know that I knew about her family yet. She wouldn't trust me to keep it to myself even if I had no intention of giving her up to the Seekers. She was human after all, they were deceptive and distrusting—she would think I was lying.

We were still walking. I knew where we were supposed to be going—the cave.

It was almost dawn and we were at the edge of Phoenix.

Charlie was thinking about her brothers. Especially Kyle. It bothered her that she hadn't been able to tell him goodbye.

A young boy named Jaime weighed on her mind as well.

_How did Jaime take it? How did he react? I had grown so close to him the past year. Now he probably thought I was dead. _I heard the sadness in Charlie's thoughts.

There were more thoughts. About someone named Jeb and how he was handling it. About Wanda, how Wanda was coping, if she was helping Ian through it. About Sunny, how she was dealing with Charlie being taken with her fragile emotional balance, how she was helping Kyle. About Mel and how her and Jared were doing, how they depended on each other through tough times.

I was crying in her mind. I felt her sadness, her loneliness, her longing to be home. It was awful. How did humans deal with such strong emotions? And all at once?

xxxxxxxxxxxx

We had been walking for hours. The sun was nearly all the way up in the sky. We were in the middle of the desert, walking down the side of a dirt-packed, two-lane highway.

We hadn't spoken since early this morning. It wasn't out of anger. Charlie was too exhausted to speak. Taking over her body physically even for a few minutes tired her. She had been walking this body for **hours**.

Our steps were sliding on the pavement. I could feel her knees weakening with every step we took. She was exhausted from not only the physical control but from heat as well.

I decided to speak up.

_You're tired, Charlie. You need to rest. Let me take over._

She made no response.

_I won't take us back to Phoenix. I'm tired too but not nearly as much as you are. I can walk for a few more hours while you rest. Please. Don't exhaust yourself any more than you already have. Just let me have control for a while. We'll get you home faster this way. If you alone controlled our body, you'd have to rest for a full day just so you can continue to walk. It only makes sense to let me walk and get us there in half the time by us taking turns._

That got her.

_You're right. _She replied quietly. She really was tired. I could hear it in her voice.

She stopped walking and closed our eyes. I felt our body slumping as my corner slowly was becoming crowded with two beings in it. I quickly slid forward to the physical side of my occupation.

I stopped our body from falling over as I straightened our legs.

I felt her settle into the small corner of my mind as I began walking down the highway.

_Thank you, _She said tiredly. _For everything. For keeping the others safe, for not taking us back to Phoenix, for protecting me. _

_Of course,_ I replied. _I consider you a friend. I trust you and I know you trust me._

I hesitated and she waited quietly.

_Speaking of trust, _I began slowly. _I know. I know about Ian and Kyle. I know how you were separated from your family in the invasion. And I am so sorry that that happened to you. I had no idea. I hope you won't be too angry with me. Your walls fell while you were running out of the building. I think your emotions were so powerful that it broke the wall between us. Like an overload. The walls can handle only so much of these strong human emotions._

There was a long pause on Charlie's end.

_I'm not mad at you. If I'm mad at anyone, I'm mad at myself. I can't believe I let my walls down. I didn't even feel them go down. I couldn't hear your thoughts and I couldn't even feel you. I thought I was alone. I've put my family at risk. I can't believe I let you see where they are! _She was scolding herself.

_Charlie, _I began, trying to calm her. She was tired enough—she didn't need to get worked up even more. _I told you that you could trust me. I mean that. You can trust me. I'm not going to betray them. I promised you that I would keep whatever information you shared a secret unless you told me I could say something. I'm keeping that promise. You have nothing to worry about. Just tell me where to go._

Charlie sighed. _Thank you._ I could feel her relaxing and calming down.

_So where do I go from here? _I asked her.

_Stay on the highway. There should be a gravel road about 20 or so miles down. It should be on our side of the road. We should reach it by 9 tonight, I'm guessing. _She explained as she yawned.

_Get some sleep. You need to rest. I can take care of us for now. If I need you, I'll wake you up._ I felt like a mother tucking her child in for the night.

_Okay…_ That was the last word I heard from her before she was out.

xxxxxxxxxxxx

The faint light emanating from the moon cast a silvery glow over the desert later that night.

The desert really was quite beautiful in the moonlight. There were small hills and peaks on either side of the road about a mile off. I heard the occasional scurrying of a lizard or chirp from a cricket.

I had been watching the patchy moon through the sparse clouds and hadn't been paying attention. The sound of gravel under my feet brought my mind back to the ground. It took a moment for my eyes to adjust to the gray ground after staring at the moon for so long.

Once I realized this was a gravel drive I was standing on, I followed the path with my eyes. It certainly was wide enough for a vehicle. Were those tire tracks?

I spoke gently as not to alarm Charlie.

_Charlie. Charlie, wake up._

She grumbled.

I rolled my eyes and gave her a mental shove.

_I think I've found the road._

Once she heard those words, she was wide awake.

_Where? What? Lemme see. _She said at full alert.

I looked back to the dirt stretch and followed its path off into the dark desert. It stretched on for a long ways.

I saw something familiar in the distance.

Was that…? Yes, it had to be it.

The ridge.

_This _is _it! _Charlie squealed. _River, take this road. Follow it until we get to the ridge. I'm sure you can guess where to go from there. _She grinned. Charlie was so happy and I couldn't blame her. She was going to see her family again and very soon.

I started down the long stretch of dirt road leading Charlie to her loved ones.

**There it is! Chapter 7! I hope you guys don't hate me for updating so quickly but I cannot express how in love with this story I am. Once I have an idea of how to continue it, I have to get it written and posted ASAP. :)**

**As always, I hope you enjoyed the read! PLEASE REVIEW! I WANT TO KNOW WHAT YOU THINK! :D Thanks so much guys!**

** -Em**


	8. Chapter 8

**Please R&R! :)**

** -Em**

**River POV**

I felt a warm, grainy feeling on the back of my neck and quickly realized what it was—sand.

I squinted into the late morning sunshine. I had walked late into the night last night. I thought I deserved a rest. Charlie would be reunited with her family before she knew it. I thought she could wait long enough for me to catch some sleep.

_Morning! _Charlie beamed.

_Good morning. _I groaned.

_Let's go! We got a long day ahead of us! We gotta go, River! _She pushed as I slowly got to my feet.

_We don't have far to go. I walked 10 of the 11 or so miles last night. We're at the ridge, Charlie. Relax. You're brothers aren't going anywhere._

_You don't know that. _She added in a more somber tone.

_That's true but try to stay optimistic. _I suggested.

_Alright but let's go! _She shouted.

I grabbed the duffel bag, slung it over my shoulder, walked around the corner of the ridge, and just like it had been in Charlie's memory, the mountain stood over the desert sand.

**Brandt POV**

I was keeping watch on a small cliff not too far from the cave.

I scanned the desert slowly through my binoculars when something caught my eye.

There—about a mile out into the desert—was a girl.

I lowered the binoculars from my eyes and quickly raised them back. I had to be sure I was seeing clearly before I ran down to the caves and alerted everyone.

Sure enough, she was walking towards me across the desert.

I looked closer and saw her hair. There was only one person with that color hair and that was Charlie.

She was back.

I ran down the backside of the hill and booked it to the cave entrance. I had to get Kyle and Ian.

**Ian POV**

I was working with Wanda in the fields. We had been running water to and from the field for the past two hours.

The sound of quick footsteps in the corridor caught everyone's attention. Brandt suddenly ran in the room.

"Ian!" He shouted. I was confused but the urgency in his voice told me I needed to go to him **now**.

"What?" I asked when I finally reached him, Wanda by my side.

"You're not going to believe this."

**Kyle POV**

I was in mine and Sunny's room. I didn't feel like working. Ian had tried to get me to work and eat more. He didn't understand the guilt I felt. I had been with Sunny when they left on that raid.

I hadn't said goodbye. I had just assumed that they would all come back safe and sound. They always did.

But that time it had been different.

Tears ran down my face and I heard someone burst through the door. I quickly brushed the tears away with the back of my hand and turned in my seat.

Ian stood there panting. He looked like he had sprinted here from the East field. Which was probably what he had done.

"What's going on?"

My little brother's face broke into the biggest grin I'd seen in months. "She's back."

That was all he said, but I knew exactly what he meant. I grabbed my jacket and we ran to the carport.

**Wanda POV**

It was so hard to contain my happiness. Not only was I happy that Ian and Kyle would have their sister back, but so would I. Everyone would have Charlie back soon.

I ran with Ian and Kyle to the carport, we hopped in the Jeep, and sped out of the cave towards our long lost sister.

**River POV**

I kept walking towards the mass of rock erected in the middle of the sand. It felt like it was never getting closer. Like every step I took didn't help at all.

Charlie could hardly contain herself. She wanted me to run, but I decided against it in this heat.

I looked out on the horizon towards the mountain and saw a speck of white with brown swirls clouding around it. I knew what this was from Charlie's memory of returning to her family the first time.

As I saw the speck of the car inching its way towards us, Charlie's walls went down. If on purpose or an accident, she showed me how she had been reunited with her brothers before.

**FLASHBACK**

_Jared skidded the Jeep to a halt in the low carport. Before he even had the chance to turn the engine off, I had thrown myself out of the car and was running as fast as my legs could carry me down the corridor._

_I had no idea what had happened to being tired. I guessed it was adrenaline and excitement. _

_I heard fast paced footsteps behind me._

_Jared called out to me as I entered a huge round room in the cavern. I froze in awe. This place was _huge.

"_Charlie, wait." Jared panted as he caught up to me._

"_What?" I asked, breathless._

"_Your brothers are in here." He gestured towards a smaller corridor branching off of the main plaza._

_He led me down the corridor to a room with a red, wooden door. He knocked three times and waited for the door to open._

_Ian locked eyes with me and before I could say a word, he was crushing me in a vice-like hug. _

_I squeezed my eyes shut as tears ran down my face. I had missed and worried about him so much._

"_Charlie…" He breathed. _

_He let go of me just enough to see my face. _

"_Where have you been? How'd you find us? How'd you get away? What happened to you?" _

_I laughed at his interrogation._

"_You know a simple 'Missed you, sis' would be nice." I joked._

_He wrapped me in another hug, pulling my head to his chest. "I missed you, Char. And I worried about you so much. Me and Kyle both did."_

_I was in my big brother's arms again. I was safe. No one could hurt me here._

"_I love you, Ian." I rasped, my throat closing up with emotion._

"_I love you too, Char." I heard him sniff._

_He walked with me down the corridor with his arm wrapped around my waist. Apparently, Jared had left in the middle of our mush-fest._

_Ian beamed down at me and knocked on Kyle's door._

_What followed was the three of us holding each other, crying, and making promises of never leaving each other ever again._

**END OF FLASHBACK**

**Charlie POV**

The Jeep stopped about three yards away from us.

_Don't be scared, _I told River. _They won't hurt us._

And I knew that was true. They knew that a human could live and fight their occupation. They wouldn't dare hurt me.

River was silent. She didn't know what to expect from other humans—she'd never encountered any.

_Can I? Please? I need it right now._ I begged her.

_Go ahead._ River clearly didn't want to be the one to respond to these strangers. They were strangers to her and her alone.

But to me, they were my family.

Ian and Kyle got out of the Jeep first with Wanda a close second.

I looked from Ian to Kyle and back again. I didn't know what to do. I wanted to tell them it was me but I didn't know how to start.

Ian cleared the distance between us and put his hands on either side of my face. He stared so intently into my eyes that I was sure he could see to my very core. Is that how Wanda felt when he looked at her?

"Is it you?" He rasped, his eyes welling up with tears.

"Yes, I'm here." I whispered.

In an instant, Kyle was by my side with his hand on the nape of my neck. He smiled at me.

"How? How is it you?" Kyle asked.

"I fought it. I fought my occupation," I turned to my closest brother. "I promised you, Ian. I promised I'd fight and I have. I can't stay in control of my body forever. It exhausts me."

Kyle and Ian both wrapped their arms around me and laughed heartily. Just thankful to finally have their little sister back, even if I wasn't my whole self yet.

The only reason I didn't have to prove that it really was me was because I was their sister—their own flesh and blood. And the fact that this had happened before with Mel was a good factor to have on my side.

We sank to the ground in one massive heap. We just stayed there and held each other. I needed to tell them as much as I could while I was still in control.

But that could wait.

Right now, I needed to be with my brothers and enjoy their company.

**Ian POV**

Charlie's body stood in front of me, the bright sunlight reflecting off of the white-blue of her eyes.

I felt so much in that instant. Relief, joy, love, happiness. I just wanted to grab a hold of her and never let her go again.

But I had to make sure it was you before I did anything.

There was a glint of familiarity in her eyes. I was sure a soul wouldn't look at a group of humans like that.

I walked over to her and rested my hands on either side of her face, gazing into her white-blue eyes.

I saw recognition in those alien eyes and before I even asked the question, I knew the answer.

"Is it you?" I choked, knowing I was looking at my sister. My brave, wonderful, self-sacrificing, strong little sister.

"Yes, I'm here." She replied in a quiet whisper.

**Kyle POV**

I finally had a second chance to make it up to Charlie. I could finally rid myself of this terrible guilt and move on. I would get my chance to apologize.

My baby sister. She was _here_. She had made her second miraculous return to us.

She was definitely a fighter. I had always treated her like a child, even when she showed up at the caves with Jared.

She was always going to be my baby sister, but I now realized that I needed to let her be an adult. I hadn't seen how much she had grown in the four years we'd been apart. Now, I saw what I had needed to all along.

A woman. My sister wasn't a girl anymore—she never had been. She was a fighter and one tough little cookie.

Nothing could express how happy I felt seeing her again, feeling her hair in my hands, holding her close. I never wanted to let go.

**Wanda POV**

I watched in silent tears as the scene unfolded in front of me. Ian walking to his sister, Kyle reaching for her, all three of them crumbling to the ground in hugs and tears.

I was so giddy I could hardly bear it to stand this far away, but I knew they needed their time to be together—just the three of them.

Charlie was my sister but it wasn't a blood bond. It wasn't as deep as her connection to Ian and Kyle was.

I watched as they laughed and cried together, enjoying each others' company.

I smiled.

The family was together again at last.

**River POV**

I was weeping. All of Charlie's walls came tumbling down as soon as she saw her brothers. I knew every single detail of her life but that wasn't what mattered.

These emotions. Her love for her brothers, their love for her, the commitment she had to them, the joy she was feeling at being with them once again, the relief Charlie felt knowing they were still safe.

There were too many emotions for me to sort. She felt so much at once, I was amazed that humans didn't explode from all these insane emotions.

I stayed silent and let Charlie spend this time with her brothers. She deserved that. She had fought this hard for this long and she needed to be with Ian and Kyle.

It was in that moment that I realized I was feeling a human emotion. Love. Love for Ian and Kyle just like Charlie possessed. Maybe not as deep, but it was still there. A brotherly kind of love.

They hadn't met me yet and I didn't know how they would react to me. They loved their sister very much and would do anything to get her back. But how far would they go to get Charlie back? Would they kill me?

I didn't want to know the answer but I knew I'd have to face it sometime.

But not now. This was a time to think about the present. To celebrate Charlie's return to her family.

There would be a time for me to dwell on my well-being…but now wasn't that time.

**Charlie POV**

Once my brothers finally released me and we rose from the sand, I went to Wanda and embraced her in a hug. I had missed my sister and my best girlfriend.

"I've missed you," She whispered in my ear so only I could hear her. "I didn't know what to do to help him. I wanted to so badly. He would only ask for me to be close to him, to hold him, to be near him as much as possible. I missed you **so** much but I don't think anyone could have missed you as much as your brothers did."

I felt her tears hit the side of my neck.

"Wanda…" I pulled back to look into her face. "Don't ever think like that. Like you're not as important to me; that you're somehow of a lesser value to me. You're my sister and I love you. I missed you too." I wrapped my arms around her again.

We climbed into the Jeep and took off back towards the cave.

**So there's the reunion! I know you guys are probably wondering "Why did Ian and Kyle freak out? Why did they keep a level head? That's not them." I wanted to show how deep the relationship was between the three of them and that they **_**knew**_** that Charlie was still there. I really wanted to show the closeness of their family in this chapter.**

**I hope you guys liked the way I used the flashback of Charlie's first arrival at the cave. I like doing flashbacks and giving back-story as I go.**

**SPOILER ALERT: I will be elaborating on the four years that Charlie was separated from Ian and Kyle. The brief overview I gave in Chapter 6 wasn't nearly as deep as I want to go with it. There's definitely going to be more flashbacks throughout this story.**

**The main thing with this story is that there isn't very much back-story in the book about Ian & Kyle before the invasion. It's pretty much open ended. So I'm providing my own back-story and addition to The Host.**

**Hope you enjoyed the read! I love writing this story! PLEASE FOLLOW/FAVORITE AND REVIEW! **

** -Em**


	9. Chapter 9

**Hey guys I'm back. :) I hope you guys like the story so far. I've gotten 7 reviews and I'm beyond happy! I really hope that number continues to rise as I continue writing. :) **

**I'm going mostly off of the book but I'm describing the looks of the actors in the movie. That's really the only thing that I'm using from the movie…and maybe a few other little things here and there.**

**I hope you like this chapter. This is when everyone meets River. And since everyone has experienced the situation with Mel and Wanda, they don't "freak out" like they did in The Host. I don't want my readers to be shocked when Ian has a civil conversation and doesn't slap River/Charlie across the face. Ya know?**

**But anyways, I hope you like this chapter. Yes, I realize it's been a while since I've updated but I'm here for now. :P**

**Enjoy! **

**Ian POV**

I had been sitting outside of Charlie's room for the past two days. I only left long enough to get food and come back. I was constantly wondering why Charlie—or the soul inside her—was sleeping this long.

_Well, walking through the desert wouldn't make you tired either._ I thought to myself, shaking my head at my own stupidity.

I thought back to when we had first found Wanda. We hadn't known that Melanie was still alive inside. I remembered how Wanda looked when we found her—burned, chapped, and dry. I cringed at the memory. I never wanted to see Wanda like that again.

I wouldn't treat Charlie the way we had treated Wanda. And I wouldn't let anyone else, either.

She was _alive_. I couldn't completely wrap my head around it. I felt like I was still in shock or something, like it hadn't completely sunk in yet. But I knew she was alive in there. We just had to find another host for the soul—and soon.

I heard the quiet squeaking of the mattress on the other side of the green curtain.

My head snapped towards the small entrance and I stood up.

"Knock, knock." I said quietly, pulling the curtain back.

"Hi, there." I said quietly as I looked down at the face of my sister.

"Hello." She answered softly. I could tell she was scared. Why wouldn't she be? She'd never seen a human in her whole existence. She didn't know what to expect.

"I'm sure you know who I am seeing how Char is alive. What's your name?" I sat on the lumpy mattress next to her.

"River Of Stars but I prefer River." She kept her eyes on her hands folded neatly in her lap.

"You don't have to be afraid of me—or anyone else. We're not going to hurt you. There's nothing to be scared of." I smiled reassuringly at her when she finally looked up.

"Thank you. I've never seen humans before. I wasn't sure how to react. I wasn't scared, I was more like terrified." She explained hurriedly.

I chuckled lightly and put an arm around her shoulders. "Don't worry. No one will hurt you. It's just the Seekers we don't care for, really."

I stood up and offered her my hand.

"You hungry?" I asked.

She nodded. "Very much actually."

We started down the corridor into the main plaza.

**River POV**

We had just entered the main plaza when Ian asked me a question.

"Were you asleep for so long because you were tired from your excursion in the desert or was there something else?"

I smiled as I looked at him. "You humans know quite a lot about us Souls, don't you?"

"If I knew, I wouldn't be asking. But yes, we do know quite a bit but not everything. I've learned that there is never too much knowledge when it comes to knowing about Souls. You need to observe everything and-"

_Watch every detail._ Charlie finished his sentence as he spoke it.

_What was that?_ I asked her.

_I told him that when I first came to the caves. _She smiled thinking back on it.

"You okay?" I heard Ian's voice coming back into focus.

"Yes, I'm sorry. Charlie was… speaking with me." I furrowed my brow. I didn't know if he would understand what I meant, but apparently he did.

A smile crept up on his face. "What'd she say?"

"She was remembering when she told you those words."

His smile grew and his eyes went somewhere far away as he was thinking. "Yeah… I remember everything about that day. What she was wearing, every word she said, exactly what happened down to the tiniest detail. That's a day I'm not likely to forget. Not in this lifetime anyway."

I didn't realize I was crying until Ian broke out of his daze and a look of concern spread across his face.

"Are you ok?" He asked.

"I'm sorry?" I asked confused.

"You're crying." He pointed out.

"I am? Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't even realize that. I guess I'm just sensitive to human emotions." I wiped my face clean and sighed.

We reached the kitchen then. I was expecting all of the humans to notice my presence. To come attacking from all sides. But I got the exact opposite response.

I was welcomed. People I had never seen before in my existence were telling me "hello" and asking "how are you." It was bizarre.

And then I realized it wasn't me they were talking to. It was Charlie. They were welcoming her, not me. They probably despised me on the inside for being in Charlie's body. But I couldn't help it. It was who we were.

_Parasites._ Charlie murmured.

I flinched at the word.

_You were calling me that weren't you?_ I asked.

_No. No, that's just the word I remember Maggie using when she talked about Wanda. Maggie doesn't take to Souls too well._

_Well, there really isn't much of a better word for what we are I guess. It's true. We are parasites in our own way. But we do try to coexist. And now that you've mentioned Wanda, where is she? _I began searching the room for her but couldn't find her anywhere.

"Where's Wanda?" I asked Ian as we stood at the counter and picked up our food.

"She's probably with Mel. Checking up on her and whatnot." He led me to a table and we began eating. The food wasn't as good as the food the Souls had prepared but it was still good in a dusty, bland sort of way.

"Checking up on her?" I questioned.

"Char, you didn't tell her?" He looked at me in disbelief.

_Tell him I felt it wasn't important. It didn't concern you at the moment. It wasn't critical for you to know. _Charlie told me.

"She says that she thought it wasn't important for me to know. That is wasn't critical. None of my business I guess." I shrugged and went back to picking at the vegetables on my plate with my fork.

Ian sighed heavily. "I guess she's right. It wasn't really important for you to know back with the Souls… And I appreciate you not giving her too much information, Char… But now that you're here with us, you might as well know. I mean, you'll find out sooner or later."

I sat there, staring at Ian, waiting.

"Mel's pregnant." Ian smiled.

"Oh." Was all I could manage. My mind was racing at the same speed Seeker's cars drove.

I had never experienced a human pregnancy. I had never seen what a human looked like. I had so many questions. I could learn so much. How long was the duration of the pregnancy? How was the baby born? Did it come into the world in an egg form or a live child? All of these questions zoomed around in my head as I chewed my food.

Charlie chuckled in my head.

_What?_ I asked innocently.

_You're just funny. You're acting like a little kid. You're so curious and innocent. It's sweet. Don't worry, I'm sure we'll be seeing Mel soon. I can't wait to see her again! She wasn't even pregnant when I was taken. Or at least, if she was, she didn't know or they hadn't told anybody. No one knew._

Ian interrupted our conversation. "Is Charlie talking to you again?"

I smiled softly. "Yes, she is."

"I'll give you two a minute while I take care of our plates." He stood, scooped up our plates and walked away.

I went back to our conversation.

_Is Melanie nice?_

_Very. _Charlie smiled._ She'll be very understanding of our situation because she knows what this is like. You'll love her._

_Okay. I hope I meet her soon._

_I want to have children someday… _Charlie's thoughts roamed to a face. A face of a young man with messy brown hair, chocolate eyes, and a big crooked smile.

_You weren't supposed to see that._ I felt a wall go up in my mind.

_Who was that? _I asked.

_No one. No one important. _Charlie guarded herself.

It was then that I saw a man sitting across the kitchen from us with a pained look on his face. He looked right into my eyes, got up, and walked out of the kitchen.

It was the same man in Charlie's thoughts.

I felt Charlie shrink into her corner. I wanted to know who he was. And why he meant so much to Charlie.

_Who is he?_ I pressed Charlie again.

_No one, River. It doesn't matter. Can we just drop it? _She seemed to roll over and turn her back to me.

_No. _I stood my ground. _Who _is_ he?_

She was reluctant and I didn't know why. It felt like an eternity before she finally answered me.

_Aaron._ She whispered.

_Why didn't you tell me about him?_

_Because I know what happens when you share too much with a Soul occupying your body._

_What does that mean? _I asked, confused.

_It means that I knew that if I told you about Aaron, you'd start to have feelings for him. The same feelings I have for him. I love him, alright? It's just like how you feel about Ian. He's like an older brother figure to you because that's who he is to me. It's no different with Kyle and that's how it would be with Aaron._

I was silent for several minutes.

_I don't think that will happen._

_Why not? _Charlie whispered, terrified of the thought that I would fall in love with Aaron.

_Because I don't find him attractive._

Charlie burst into hysterical laughter.

_Well it's true! _I said in my own defense. _He's just… eh._

That only made her laugh even harder.

When Ian got back, I told him I wanted to go back to my room because I was starting to get a headache.

**There it is! Sorry it's been so long. Research paper, weekend guests, and school have been sucking up all of my time the past two weeks.**

**Hope you guys liked the little tidbit of humor in there at the end. I wanted to lighten it up a bit and that was how I made it happen. :) **

**Please R&R! I love reviews and there are never too many of them! :D**

**Thanks for reading!**

** -Em**


	10. Chapter 10

**Hi there, dear readers! I love writing this story but I'm not getting as much feedback as I've been hoping for so…I'd like REVIEWS PLEASE. :D**

**And there was a small hiccup in the last chapter. I said Aaron had brown eyes and he's supposed to have blue. My bad, guys. So just remember to ignore the comment about brown eyes in the last chapter. Aaron's eyes will be blue from now on. Sorry!**

**Enjoy reading!**

**River POV**

It had been almost two weeks since me and Ian had shared my first meal in the kitchen. And two weeks since I had seen Charlie's Aaron.

I was hoping to see him again so that Charlie would be able to see him. I had no feelings for him; I didn't find him attractive at all. And that was the truth—not just some chant I kept telling myself to keep feelings at bay.

I snorted softly. It was Charlie's choice. I had my own choice but that didn't matter anymore. He wouldn't know me now.

That grabbed Charlie's interest.

_Who wouldn't know you?_ Charlie asked eagerly.

_What are you so excited about? _I shot back. The human part of me was getting a bit snarky… Well, Charlie was rubbing off on me anyway.

_You know who I love. _She reminded me. _My turn to know who you love._

I pondered telling her for a few minutes. _He was a Healer on my last planet. He was _my _Healer. That was how we met. He's probably still there. He's quite a bit older than me. At least 500 of your years or so. I didn't get to tell him goodbye before I left that planet…_

_I'm so sorry, River. I can relate to that a little. I got to say goodbye to Aaron before we left on the raid but I didn't get to see him one last time before they took me. And I didn't get to say goodbye to Kyle. But it was better that Aaron wasn't on the raid with us. If he had been, he probably would have been taken along with me. He wouldn't have let them take me—he would have been killed before he saw me or anyone else taken._

Charlie was shaking in a sense. I tried to comfort her.

_You're right. I can see him as being very protective. But you're home now—you'll be reunited with him in the flesh—no pun intended—soon. _

Charlie calmed after a moment. _We were engaged._

I wasn't sure why, but this surprised me. Then I caught onto her wording.

_What do you mean "were engaged"? _I asked.

_Aaron probably doesn't know I'm alive in here. And even if he did… I don't know. He's, he's difficult at times. He wouldn't understand. He witnessed what happened with Mel and Wanda but I don't know. I don't know if my brothers have told him, I don't know if he believes I'm strong enough. I don't know if he believes I'm a fighter._

_If he doesn't believe in you, then he's not worth it. You've proven it to me, now you have to prove it to him. I'll talk to Ian and ask if he's spoken to Aaron. If he hasn't, well then it's time to lay down the law._

Wow. Charlie really _was_ rubbing off on me.

**Aaron POV**

I sat in my room trying to think through all of this. That was what I did. I figured things out, I thought about them until I worked out every detail I possibly could.

Was it happening again? Just like it had happened with Melanie and Wanda, was Charlie still alive in River's body? It was a nice hope for River to be here and that Charlie's body to be home again—that Charlie really was alive. But then again, there was the possibility that Charlie had actually died and the Soul had gotten a hold on her memories. That the Soul had found this place and was going to turn us in to the Seekers. Who knew?

Charlie's last words were on repeat in my mind ever since she left on that raid. That stupid raid that had taken her away from me…away from all of us.

**FLASHBACK**

"_I'll be back. I promise." Charlie whispered into my face._

_We stood there taking in every second. Both of her hands rested on my waist while my hands rested on either side of her face. _

"_I miss you already." I mumbled._

_She chuckled softly and finally looked into my eyes._

_Her green-blue eyes and her dirty blond hair definitely marked her as an O'Shea._

_Before she could say anything else, I pressed my rough, chapped lips against her soft, warm mouth. Her hands reached up into the hair at the nape of my neck and knotted in my hair. When someone cleared their throat, we broke apart._

_Ian stood there with a smirk on his face._

_He was one of my best friends but his timing could be a bit better. Since he was one of my best friends, he wasn't too fond of the fact that his 22 year old best friend was in a relationship with his 18 year old sister._

"_Would you like to go on this raid or stay here and get a room?" Ian looked at his sister._

"_Is that permission?" Charlie asked, turned back to me, and began to kiss my cheek._

"_NO." Ian's voice turned to stone. Charlie released her grip around my neck, threw her head back, and laughed._

_I joined in._

_If there was one thing Ian hated, it was the idea of me and his sister together—like together, together._

_But I didn't want to go there yet. I wanted to wait until she was mine forever. Char only did stuff like that to get a good reaction out of her brother._

"_Give me two seconds?" Charlie asked Ian._

"_Yeah, alright. Two." He stalked off towards the trucks, running his hands through his hair._

"_Now that he's gone…" Charlie kissed me a few times quickly. "I'll miss you. Just remember I won't be gone for that long. Two weeks tops."_

"_Yeah, I know. But it'll still be the longest two weeks of my life."_

"_I've gone on raids for way longer than that before. You never said anything about it before."_

"_Well, we weren't together before and we definitely weren't engaged before." I smiled down at her._

_She smiled and I saw color creep up on her face. Her brothers didn't know yet. We wanted to wait until the right time._

_The sound of a truck horn caught our attention. _

"_I guess you better go." I sighed._

"_Yeah, I guess." She gave me a brief sad smile, kissed me quickly one more time on the lips, grabbed her duffel bag off the ground, and ran toward the trucks. She climbed up onto the side steps and before she shut the door, she looked back at me and blew me a kiss. _

"_I love you." I called._

"_I love you, too." She called back as Ian drove the truck past me._

**END FLASHBACK**

I felt the tears rolling down my face as my last memory of Charlie faded from my mind.

I missed her. I missed her so much. Every little thing. I missed how she did her hair, I missed hearing her laugh, I missed seeing her smile, I missed her eyes…

I missed everything. I wanted her back _now._ I didn't know how much longer I could handle not having Charlie in my life. I could only hope that she really was alive inside River.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Almost an hour later, I heard a low knock on my door. I went to open the door and found Ian standing outside with…River. River was here. Charlie's body was standing right here in front of me.

I looked back to Ian.

"Hey." I greeted.

"Hey," Ian greeted back. He was still my best friend, especially after losing Charlie the way we did. He still wasn't exactly thrilled about the idea of me and her together, though. "Can we come in? There's something I need to talk to you about."

"Sure." I was a bit confused.

They both came in and sat on the severely small sofa against the wall on the right. River was nervous; she kept picking at her nails and fidgeting with the hem of her shirt.

What was she so nervous about?

I sat down on my bed across the room from them.

"What's up?" I asked Ian.

He opened his mouth like he was gonna say something but he just shut it again and scratched at his hair line behind his ear.

"What?" I demanded, less patiently. I didn't like this whole suspenseful atmosphere. I wanted to know what was up—especially if Ian was involved. That usually meant that Charlie was too.

"There really is no easy way to say it, Aaron." Ian stood and placed his hands on his hips. He walked towards the back of my room so he was profile to me.

"Say what?" My patience was really wearing off now. I stood up with my arms crossed. I looked from River to Ian and back again. "What's going on, Ian?"

"Charlie…She's still alive in there, man." Ian turned slowly and faced me completely.

**So there's the 10****th**** CHAPTER! I wasn't originally planning on turning this into a romantic story. I had a bit of a romantic twist towards the end but I wasn't planning one this soon. Don't worry. **

**THIS WILL NOT TURN INTO A COMPLETE ROMANCE FIC. IT STARTED OUT AS A FAMILY/DRAMA FANFIC AND IT'S GOING TO STAY THAT WAY. JUST WITH SOME ROMANCE AS A BIT OF A BONUS.**

**And honestly, how can you have a Host fanfic without at least one tidbit of romance between the main character and another character? Anyways, hope you liked this chapter.**

**PLEASE REVIEW! :D THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR READING! LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THINK! :D**


	11. Chapter 11

**Enjoy!**

** -Em**

**Aaron POV**

I felt my mouth suddenly go dry and my throat closed up instantly. I didn't know what to say. What I considered to be a tiny glimmer of hope was actually real. Charlie, my beautiful, incredibly strong fiancé was alive.

I looked to River for confirmation of Ian's words.

Her voice came out quiet and raspy from not speaking for the few moments they had been here.

"It's true," River rasped then cleared her throat. "She's very much alive. You didn't lose her, she's still here. And she loves you. She can't wait to see you when she's herself once again." She smiled up at me kindly.

I sighed one of relief and happiness.

"Now the issue is," Ian began. "What are we going to do with River?"

I saw River slightly recoil at that question. I thought now would probably be a good time to reassure her.

"River, nothing will happen to you. We here have nothing against Souls; we just want our people back. No harm will come to you, that's a promise." I looked right into those bright blue eyes to get my point across.

She gave me a small smile and a nod. "I trust you. I trust both of you. Anyone that Charlie trusts, I trust. I know I won't be hurt. Humans can be…hostile but I know that as long as Charlie is in me, none of you will hurt me."

Me and Ian just stood there speechless. I, personally, couldn't believe how insightful she was.

"And I am fully aware that once Charlie is back in her own body," She continued. "And I am not, that you are perfectly capable of doing whatever you will with me. I can only ask you that you spare me and send me to another planet before anyone decides to kill me."

She spoke the words with care. She weighed her words but they were also spoken very matter-of-factly. Even though she appeared strong and straight forward, she was shaking slightly.

I thought about her words carefully. I couldn't guarantee what would happen to her once we got Charlie back. I knew that most everyone wouldn't have a problem with her joining us here if she proved trustworthy. But if she proved not to be trustworthy… I didn't want to think about having to kill her. Maybe we could just send her away without another word. She wouldn't be able to tattle on us to the Seekers from another planet could she? I hoped not.

Ian was the one to break the long silence.

"Well," He sighed. "I don't know about you Aaron, but I'm kinda curious about what Charlie has to say about the situation."

River took that as her queue. Her eyes turned distant and her face changed into one of concentration.

We waited for a few seconds before River spoke up.

**River POV**

I voiced Charlie's thoughts as she told them to me.

"She wants to be back with you all. She doesn't want anyone to try anything—her 'in here or not', as she put it. She says the whole reason she came back was to show me how you lived." My words slowed down as I grasped what Charlie was saying.

These were the reasons she brought me here—the reasons she came home to her family. These words weren't just for Ian and Aaron, they were for me as well.

"She knew there wasn't a big risk in bringing me here as soon as she woke up. I was a more passive, younger, and trusting Soul," I began to really understand the meaning behind those words and I felt the tears building up in my eyes. "Charlie doesn't want anyone to hurt this body. And she doesn't want me to be sent away. She wants to teach me the way you live here and she wants me to…"

I stopped at her next thought. I wasn't expecting it at all.

Ian and Aaron didn't say anything but I knew they were silently begging to hear Charlie's thoughts.

"She wants me to 'join our family'." I finished, astonished.

I had so many emotions circling in my head.

_I'm so sorry, River. I know I should have told you but I had to keep secrets to protect my family. _Charlie pleaded in my head.

_Not now. _I spat. _I don't want to talk to you right now._

I forced the gray walls up with more force than necessary.

"Those are her thoughts," I said as I stood. "I need to go."

I marched to the door and sprinted down the corridor.

How could Charlie have taken advantage of me like this? She betrayed me! I admit I was too trusting. I needed to grow up. And I would. From now on, I wouldn't be trusting of anyone. I knew I could trust Ian, Kyle, Aaron, Jared and Mel, but anyone else had to earn my trust. And they'd have to pass several tests in order to do that. I had a weakness but no longer.

I sprinted as hard and as fast as I could. I kept running, not even paying attention to where the tunnels were taking me.

Charlie wanted to show me how they lived here. That was why she brought me here. To prove that humans weren't all bad—to prove that humans deserved to live. She wanted to make me one of "her family"? I didn't know much about human families but I did know that trust was required. Trust, faithfulness, love, courage. But I had to be able to trust everyone in this "family" that Charlie wanted me to be a part of. Which meant that Charlie had to regain my trust. And that wasn't going to be easy in this round.

**I know it's short but I felt like that was a good stopping place. Hope you guys liked it! A secret? I kind of wing these chapters with a general story line in mind. I don't really plan each chapter, I just write what I want, edit it, and post with a bigger goal that I'm slowly working towards. Hope you guys liked it! **

**PLEASE REVIEW! :D Thanks for reading!**

** -Em**


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